


a tansy and a purple hyacinth

by transclawed



Series: silent the sound as i come back around [5]
Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-22
Updated: 2019-11-22
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:02:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21522631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/transclawed/pseuds/transclawed
Summary: just two damaged kids and an ocean of broken glass.or, nathan chase has never quite had another friend like victoria chase. and she's never had another friend like him.its not about love. sometimes you just need someone to hold on to to survive.
Relationships: Victoria Chase & Nathan Prescott
Series: silent the sound as i come back around [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1514486
Comments: 1
Kudos: 8





	a tansy and a purple hyacinth

"you smell like something dead."

nathan snorts. he feels like something dead, but he doesnt say so. his sister cuffs him over the head playfully, laughing, before he can duck out of the way.

"were you out taking pictures again? i told you, next time invite me along, id love to see my brother, the future-famous photographer, actually out in action sometime!"

he chuckles, softly embarrassed, but mimes taking a photo of her.

"ill take pictures of all our travels, dont worry. as soon as we're out of here, ill have my camera out so much you'll be sick of it. promise."

kris seems to hesitate for a moment, before pulling him into a hug, and it takes everything in nathan not to flinch away. after a few moments, he's melting into it. his sister has always been like a the sun, bright and beautiful and warm, and her hugs feel like that too. she speaks into his hair, holding him tightly.

"dont you worry, little brother. we'll get out of here someday. i promise you. i might get out first, but i need you to know that if i do, im coming back for you. im never leaving you behind, nate. i swear that to you."

nathan nods, trying to blink back tears. he cant trust adults, but kris was different, kris was his big sister. his real family.

"okay. i believe you."

his voice is shaky, but genuine, and he feels her press a kiss to his forehead. he looks up, and he knows he doesnt need to finish his thought. if she abandons him, he'll never forgive her for this. she meets his eyes and despite the sweet smile on her lips, she looks so inordinately sad that he cant help but unhook his arms from around her and start poking her in the sides, until she's doubled over laughing and he's grinning like the devil. its a warm day, and the sunlight is dappled beneath the trees, and for a few hours, life is good. nathan prescott is hopeful, one of the few times he ever is in his long, short life.

he never is able to forgive her. he tries, he really does, and maybe because she wants to so badly, kris believes him. but the pain of betrayal bleeds into his emails and he knows that she knows.

he doesnt blame her for leaving, for escaping. he blames her for leaving him behind, to face the world completely alone.

the day kris left was one of the worst days of his life. he doesnt intend on letting anyone in that close again, not when it hurts so much, not when he knows they cant be trusted. after all, he's a prescott. who could possibly care about him, and not the money?

his question is both answered and not answered, in the form of one victoria chase.

she was always immediate, and demanding. of attention, of his thoughts, of his words. its funny, how quickly they understood each other. but from the moment their parents introduced them to each other in that stilted, polite way, they'd known they were going to be friends. nathan had never told her all his secrets, but he told her much. she, in turn, turned herself inside out too. inside out kids, with hands that fit together. they needed each other like air, the way a child needs a friend they can genuinely trust, when things get bad. they are the only ones allowed to see inside each other, all the rotting, sick parts, the ones that fester. nathan didnt tell her everything, of course, she didn't deserve that, but she knew enough. it always made nathan laugh, to see how deeply angry she always had been at his father, for what he did. as if he was worth defending. protecting. it was a nice thought, if fantasy, and nathan let her believe it.

sometimes, though. sometimes, he almost let it all spill out. the parts that twisted him the worst, the parts he never told anyone. until jefferson, of course. but victoria, no, he.. he couldnt do that to her. he wouldnt let his father sink his claws into her insides and poison her too, even if he'd never touched her. she suspected, of course. maybe even assumed. but his mouth wouldn't cooperate when he tried to speak about it, and eventually, he stopped trying. she knew enough.

she, in turn, told him about her parents. how they were perfect, and untouchable. glass figurines with a doll child. nathan had been the one she called when, in a fit of despair and hurt, she'd taken a pair of craft scissors to her long hair. her mother's pride and joy, always claiming it as if it were her own long braid. nathan had trimmed a bit more, trying to make it look slightly less inelegant, and victoria had slept that night in his room. children clinging together in a world that wanted them dead.

victoria learned manipulation fast, though. nathan had never had the guts for it, never wanted to twist people around his fingers like desperate worms. that had always been his father's hobby. he simply grew spikes. became sharp, angry, untouchable. victoria became untouchable too, in her own way. she was perfect. the perfect student, devoted photographer, the lovely but cold daughter. nathan watched as her shield ate her alive, and wished he could reach out a hand but he, too, was burning. they held onto each other anyways, in the ways only damaged children can.  
they are not in love. they'd each considered it, at different times, but they both came to the same conclusion: this was not about romance. it was about survival, and they needed each other's love to survive. siblings, perhaps, but it was more... twins, nathan wonders? but no, not really. best friend sounds weak, and wrong, as does any other label. its something more and something less, and there are no labels for it. some might try codependency, and sure, maybe the shoe fits. they prefer walking barefoot at the beach, imagining whales washing ashore to rescue them and take them to a distant land. they wait, often, out there. the water is cold, and the stars twinkle above them, even through the clouds of smoke that hovers around them like a smothering embrace. the whales never appear, like like kris never comes back, or how mr and mrs chase seem so far away, even when they are standing right in front of you.

yeah. nathan knew, when he saw that red binder with her name on it, that he couldn't do that. he knows, in the way he does, that this ends with him in a grave. but if she gets away, then its worth it. then its alright.


End file.
